Intel Microserver latest to crowded physicalization party

Our recent look at the idea of using ARM processors to pack large numbers of low-power, high-density Web servers into very little physical space generated quite a bit of interest, and it seems that a lot of people are thinking along these lines. Indeed, every time we cover the so-called "physicalization" fad—i.e., placing multiple tiny systems in a rack unit, instead of running multiple virtual machines on a single 1U system—we get a fresh wave of feedback on just how seriously datacenter builders are taking this idea.

Intel surely knows how much momentum is behind physicalization, and the company isn't resting on its laurels while its high-priced, high-margin server parts get passed over for systems based on cheaper processors from competitors or, in Supermicro's case, Atom. At the most recent Intel Developer Forum, Intel introduced its "microserver" format, in which a low-power, cheaper dual- or quad-core chip of the kind that might normally power a laptop is squeezed onto a small system board to make something that's smaller than a traditional blade but still powerful enough to handle Web serving chores. Now the company is taking the idea a step further by pushing the microserver as a standard to the Server System Infrastructure Forum, reports CNET.

An Atom-based server from SuperMicro

The Microserver implementation advertised fits sixteen microservers, each with one of Intel's Lynnfield processors, into a 5U chassis with cooling and PSU. The server's performance density, about 13 Lynnfield cores per rack unit, is at rough parity with 1U dual-socket servers, but well behind some blade competitors. This underscores the point: Microserver's true competition is not Blade or 1U products, but SGI's Microslice architecture and Dell's Fortuna project, which do much the same thing.

Even a victory for its preferred solution in this space would be something of a Pyrrhic victory for Intel, whose high-margin Xeon space is threatened by physicalization's margin-shopping market dynamics. Guiding the new trend to a resting place among high-end laptop processors is better for Santa Clara than a server space based on Atom or ARM, but not as nice as scrapping the whole idea and selling the Nehalem Xeon.

Other physicalization vendors continue to update their wares. SuperMicro's contribution, arguably not a physicalization product at all, forfeits the density race entirely, in what might be called Suburban Server Sprawl. The SuperServer 5015A is a half-depth 1U Atom server, and, while it can't approach the density of any other server product on the market, this solution offers a lower per-server power footprint than literally anything else. The lower density may not matter; we've covered an ongoing trend of server room emptiness as power services get exhausted with small numbers of high-density racks, leaving data centers cavernously empty. In this environment, where concrete is cheaper than power and silicon, the importance of space-density may decline, especially since cooling needs will be minimal; a cabinet of 5015s will dissipate about as much power as three dual-socket 1U servers.

SGI, not to be outdone, tells Ars that its MicroSlice architecture will soon feature slices containing Intel Atom and Lynnfield processors, allowing Microslice to exceed Microserver's density and meet the 5015's power consumption.

With a plethora of products on the market, a distinct market space for physicalized servers is emerging, and while it's still not clear how the space will settle, the key dynamics which will decide these questions are the same fundamentals driving all serverspace decisions. In the next few weeks, Ars will publish a feature article covering this topic to greater depth.